Puerto Rico Government

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is a self-ruling government and unincorporated US teritory. The government is headed by an elected governor. The governor handles all the internal matters of the republic and the US president handles all matters relating to external affairs. The president of the US is also the chief of state. The US president takes care of issues concerning foreign relations, customs, immigration, declarations of war, constitutional law, highway, military, airspace, currency, citizenship among others. Citizens of Puerto Rico are also citizens of the United States.

Elections in Puerto Rico are organized by the Puerto Rican State of Elections Commission. They are held on the first Tuesday of the month of November after four years. Voters elect the governor, the members of the legislative assembly, senators, house of representatives members, the resident commissioner, municipal assemblies, and mayors. Anyone who is over the years of 18 is eligible to vote. There is no set term limit for the governor’s seat.

The bicameral parliament building of Puerto Rico is located in the Islet of San Juan just outside the wall of San Juan. The Capitolio de Puerto Rico, as it is called in Spanish, was built in between the years of 1925 and 1929, and has a Neoclassical Revival style. It was designed by architect Rafael Carmoega, and features a dome at the center which was later built in 1961. The interior design of the building was done by several Puerto Rican designers. The official residence of the governor, the La Fortaleza (The Fortress) is also located in San Juan.

Puerto Rico possesses a "first past the post" system, which means that a voter is able to vote by party, by candidate, or even by both. Major political parties in Puerto Rico include the New Progressive party, the Popular Democratic Party, the Working People's Party, and the Puerto Rican Independence Party.

This page was last modified on May 1st, 2018

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Published on 2019-11-06


Capital	San Juan
Languages	Spanish, English
Ethnic Groups	White 75.8%, black/African American 12.4%, other 8.5% (includes American Indian, Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, other Pacific Islander, and others), mixed 3.3%
Religion	Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant and other 15%
Government	Presidential democracy; a self-governing commonwealth in political association with the US
Independance	None (territory of the US with commonwealth status)
Area	13,791.00 km²
Water Area	4,921.00 km²
Land Area	8,870.00 km²
Population	3,578,056.00 Population clusters tend to be found along the coast, the largest of these is found in and around San Juan; an exception to this is a sizeable population located in the interior of the island immediately south of the capital around Caguas; most of the interior, particularly in the western half of the island, is dominated by the Cordillera Central mountains, where population density is light
Location	Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic
GDP(PPP)	$131,000,000,000.00 (USD)
GDP (Per Capita)	$37,700.00 (USD)
Export Commodities	Its main exports are chemicals, electronics, apparel, and canned tuna.
Import Commodities	Its major imports include chemicals, machinery and equipment, and clothing.
Climate	Arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers
Terrain	Mostly mountains with coastal plain in north; precipitous mountains to the sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas
Learn More	Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico Government

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